Get going

Nancy Christie of Portland, Oregon, opines:

My nomination is “coming up on” as in “It’s coming up on 10 minutes after the hour” as spoken daily on National Public Radio. We know time is passing. The observation that an exact time might be 10 or 15 seconds in the future can be expressed with the word “almost” or simply state the time. Unless we’re timing an experiment, we don’t need to know the time within seconds. (I grudgingly accept “after the hour” when the program broadcasts in multiple time zones.)

5 thoughts on “Get going

  1. I just want to say that, as a student journalist, I find this page disturbing. May most of us never become as jaded as most of you.

  2. Newsies are jaded by a constant barrage of bad writers and bald-faced liars.

    Only way to remain unjaded is to join the former or the latter. Choose wisely.

  3. “Insurgent” is used in the news because it is much more specific than terrorist. These days, people are called terrorists left and right. The mayor of Cincinnatti said people who were boycotting a local business were “economic terrorists.” Insurgent is more specific because it means they are directly rebelling against the new system of government they are trying to set up in Iraq. Also, “suspected” and “accused” have two different meanings in news writing. Geez, do your research.

  4. Ground Zero…. with all due respect to 9-11 victims , the use of Ground Zero should now cease unless applied to a large nuclear explosion.

  5. Quote: I just want to say that, as a student journalist, I find this page disturbing. May most of us never become as jaded as most of you.
    Posted by: Neill H. at March 25, 2005 04:59 PM

    I just want to say that if you want to say something, say it. There is no need for the jargon “I just want to say…”
    Should be: “As a student journalist…”
    Same goes for: “I just wanted to say thank you,” etc. I hear it all the time and it’s always unnecessary.